


Oh Deer

by punkyjr



Category: Scorpion (TV 2014)
Genre: Car Accident, F/M, Fluff and Angst, One Shot, Post Finale, Post Season 2 Finale, Waige - Freeform, don't worry none of the characters get hurt, mention of car accident, post Toby Or Not Toby
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-29
Updated: 2016-04-29
Packaged: 2018-06-05 05:03:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6690802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/punkyjr/pseuds/punkyjr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happens after Walter leaves the garage trying to intercept Paige and Tim before they reach the jazz festival in Lake Tahoe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Oh Deer

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a post by the wonderful shaaawhat on Tumblr. Enjoy!

The desert was a pretty desolate place at night, with nothing but stars, mountains, tumbleweeds, cacti, and coyotes for company. Walter shuddered at the thought of coyotes, remembering his crash the previous year that resulted from him swerving off a cliff to avoid hitting one. The insurance rates probably wouldn’t have hiked nearly as much if he’d only hit a coyote, as opposed to tumbling off a cliff. He certainly wouldn’t have racked up so many medical bills. With a pang of guilt, he thought If I hadn’t been in the hospital recovering from my injuries, it would have given me more time to spend with Meghan. God, if I hadn’t been so reckless, things would have been much better, even if I still lost Meghan. He turned his attention back to the winding stretch of highway in front of him, keenly aware that he couldn’t risk yet another accident, especially not if he wanted to catch up with Tim and Paige before they reached Lake Tahoe. Every so often, the GPS chimed in with its monotone tally of how many miles were left till the next turn or exit. 

It didn’t take long for Walter to regret not eating anything before leaving the garage. He cursed himself for not at least grabbing an egg bagel to eat on the road. But his mind had been preoccupied with other matters, so there wasn’t much he could do about it in the meantime. He was grateful that nobody else was in the car to hear just how loudly his stomach was growling as he drove mile after mile. If he’d still had the old company car, he thought, he could have reached into the glove box for Cabe’s stash of Peek Freans. But he’d tossed that out before he sold the old car to help Sylvester earn more money towards the naming of the pediatric ward, knowing how much that would have meant to Meghan, were she still around. The relieved look on Sylvester’s face when he handed him the check had brought him some peace. Walter resolved that he would get himself coffee and a meal at the next exit he came across, since driving while tired and hungry was equally as bad for reaction times as driving drunk. It would be more efficient to make one stop than to have to make multiple stops along the way. Walter was always a fan of efficiency. Nothing was capable of running on empty, especially not humans. He then made a mental note to refuel the car at a gas station once he’d had something to eat.

Walter couldn’t help but wonder if Toby was feeling as if he were running on empty, emotionally, after Happy’s rejection of his marriage proposal. Despite insistence of not feeling emotions strongly, anxiety twisted in his gut as Walter wondered if he had made a major mistake leaving Toby alone at the garage. He hoped he wouldn’t have to track him down at casinos or bars by the time he returned from Lake Tahoe. Each team member, it seemed, had their own version of going down the rabbit hole, and Walter feared that both Happy and Toby were down the rabbit hole after the events of that night. Toby was more predictable, tending to fall into the same bad habits when he was hurting, but Happy was a mystery, even to Walter.

The flashing hazards pattern of a car’s taillights brought Walter back to earth as he slowed and then pulled over when he realized the car belonged to Tim. He noted that there was a dead mule deer in front of Tim’s car. The vehicle must have hit it and then had complications related to the impact. He got out of his own vehicle and ran over to check on Tim and, more importantly, Paige. “Thank God you’re safe, I was so worried when I recognized the license plates!” He exclaimed. Paige smiled, whereas Tim looked baffled. “I’m glad you’re here, but… what exactly are you doing all the way out here?” Tim asked Walter. Walter blinked, confused, forgetting that it wasn’t societally normal to drive several hours to catch up to one person. “I- I needed to catch up with you guys. Paige was right, the team does need her to help recover from the fiasco earlier. You can probably help, too, Tim, you’ve dealt with grief and trauma more than I have. You handled yourself well on the case in Vietnam. I don’t know what to say to Toby that wouldn’t risk making matters worse. And, Paige, maybe you might have better ideas than I do of where to find Happy. She may not have wanted Toby to follow her, but I think she needs someone on the team to check on her, and you’re the next closest person to her.” Walter blurted. Tim made a thoughtful face and nodded. “Well, we have a tow truck on the way to get my car, but I know both Paige and I could use a lift back to the garage.” Tim pointed out. “I’ll drive you guys back, but, first, we should all get something to eat and drink. That will give you time to recover from the accident. Goodness knows, I understand what it’s like to get in an accident despite trying to avoid hitting an animal.” Walter offered. Paige gave a knowing laugh. “Yes, and you’ve also sworn never to scare me like that again.” She added. Turning to Tim, Paige explained how Walter drove over the cliff the previous year trying to avoid hitting a coyote while going more than a hundred miles per hour. Tim seemed decently impressed by the mere fact that Walter had survived such an accident.

Over the late night meal in an old truck-stop diner, they discussed how to handle the situation back at the garage with Toby and Happy. “I’ll track down Happy, I know a few places other than the comedy club, Kovelsky’s, and her apartment were Happy might have gone to recover. Maybe she’ll be more willing to talk to me about this whole thing with her already being married.” Paige offered. Walter nodded his approval. “Guess that means I’ll handle locating and helping Toby. You said he was still at the garage, drinking tequila last you saw him before leaving to catch up with us?” Tim asked. “Yes, but when he’s upset, he slips into other bad habits again, like gambling, so, if he’s not at the garage, then you should check every local casino, since that’s the next place he’s most likely to be. I don’t think he’ll have gone back to his apartment- Happy’s spent too many nights there in the past, if Toby’s comment about them touching parts many times is to be believed.” Walter explained. Tim seemed amused, but quickly became somber again and nodded to acknowledge the information from Walter. “Although grief was more common with deaths, I helped mediate more than my fair share of other soldiers’ marital issues during my stint in the navy. I’ll draw from that experience when I find Toby.” He stated. “Good, because the relationship Happy and Toby have- or, had, I’m not sure which to say anymore -was just as serious, if not more so, as a marriage.” Walter told Tim. He may not have been fond of the fact that Tim showed a romantic interest in Paige, but Tim was proving more of an asset to the team as time went on. He would have to consider officially acknowledging Tim as part of the team after all of the madness of the past forty-eight hours. Walter wasn’t comfortable saying anything to Paige about his feelings for her as long as Tim was around, so the drive back was long and mostly silent, save for the occasional snore from Tim. Tim and Paige slept leaning against opposite windows in the back seat of the car. Walter couldn’t help but feel a pang of some kind of protective instinct when he saw how vulnerable Paige’s face looked as she slept, and it reminded him a lot of how little Ralph looked when fast asleep. He hoped it wouldn’t be the only time he saw her sleeping face, but that would require a confession of his feelings before that could even be considered a possibility. For the time being, the love of Walter’s life was sleeping peacefully in the back seat, despite the snoring (and slightly drooling) soldier on the other side of the car.


End file.
